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Eye scans are the future of banking

Posted: Jun 28 2016 01:59PM MST

Video Posted: Jun 28 2016 01:59PM MST

Updated: Jun 29 2016 01:11PM MST

LOS ANGELES, CA - Been a victim of a data breach or identity theft? Banking is about to get as fast and as easy as blinking, because reality has finally caught up with science fiction. Biometric technology is now accurate and cost efficient enough that some of America's largest banks are using the unique identifiers we were born with, like our fingers and faces, to safeguard accounts.

As the leader of the Wells Fargo group that developed "eye scan authentications" told the New York Times: “It is harder to take someone’s eyeball than someone’s user ID and password.”

For an industry known for long lines and paperwork, the advancements have come quickly. It used to be that a facial scan could be ruined by bad lighting. Just like a selfie. Or that voice recognition programs could be confused by background noise- or laryngitis. Now it only takes 40 seconds to capture a customer’s vocal patterns and create an imprint to use as an ID.

Banks don't even have to distribute scanners. The cameras and microphones on our mobile devices are good enough to record the data necessary to create biometric IDs. If you bank from an iPhone that reads your fingerprint on the touchpad, you're already on board.

Eager to leave passwords in the past, banks will continue to transition with these new technologies. Soon you won't just be staring at your phone- you can be transferring thousands of dollars to invest in the next big thing in biometrics.